


Princes - A Heathers AU

by animorbid



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: 80's AU, AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Heathers, Angry Katsuki Yuuri, Angst, Angst and Humor, Character's Name Spelled as Viktor, Christophe's boyfriend gets a name, Edgy, Edgy YOI, Edgy humor, Heathers AU, High School AU, Homophobia, Hurt Katsuki Yuuri, Insecure Yuri Plisetsky, M/M, POV Victor Nikiforov, Sad Katsuki Yuuri, Self-Indulgent, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, Suicide Notes, Teen Victor Nikiforov, attempted suicide, hoo boy here we go get ready for tags, leave me alone, let me live, lots and lots of angst, suicide stopped looking like a word, tbh like if theres a tw for it it's probably gonna be in this au have you even seen heathers, tragic backstories
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-09
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-10-01 15:46:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10193294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animorbid/pseuds/animorbid
Summary: Prince Plisetsky, Yuri. He was certainly a loud one. If you ever needed to find him in a crowd, you'd look for the leopard prints. Or just listen for the yelling. Despite how much he liked to insult you, though, he never cut very deep. He's either too stupid or, surprisingly enough, too nice to do any real damage. I could never really tell.Prince Popovich, Georgi. Yearbook committee president, so all of our legacies went through him. He had no discernible personality, but the last time he lost a girlfriend, he wore all black for a week. Total drama queen... er, prince.And Prince Leroy, Jean-Jacques. The almighty. Some even called him King JJ. All I can say is... wow. He is mind-bogglingly awful.





	1. Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> alright nerds let's do this. I've been super into Heathers lately -- specifically the musical.  
> BTW Luca is the placeholder name for Christophe's mystery boyfriend from the anime. Forgive me for taking an artistic liberty.  
> And also forgive how short this first chapter is.  
> Anyways, Enjoy!~

_September 1, 1989_

_Dear Diary,_

_I think I’m a good person. I mean, I try to be. Really, I think there’s good in everyone when it comes right down to it. Call me a humanist, an optimist, a masochist, whatever you want, but I try to keep that in mind while I walk head-first into the first day of senior year. And as I look out toward all the people I’ve known through all my life, I ask myself, “What happened?”_

_We used to be so happy and shiny. We got along. It’s a small town, so it’s impossible to pretend we don’t know each other, but as the days go by, the past feels farther and farther away. I used to be friends with all of these kids, but now there’s invisible barriers dividing us. Titles. Jock, nerd, freak, burnout, homo... And all I can ask myself is “why?” We’ve changed before. Maybe we can change again. Maybe senior year can be something beautiful, so I can stop worrying about survival and focus on life and love again._

_Let’s hope college is better... if I’m not dead by June._

_-Viktor Nikiforov_

 

* * *

 

I stared forward as I grabbed a tray from the lunch line. In hindsight, it would have been a good idea to bring a lunch from home, and for a very particular reason. Well, a few reasons, but one of those reasons was headed my way. Something loud and awfully obnoxious was coming down the line, ignoring all the people that got there first -- the star couple of stupidly athletic fuckboys: Mickey Crispino, quarterback, and Luca Vaude, linebacker. Despite how they acted now, probably from the pressure of their parents, they used to be nice boys once upon a time. Everybody was before middle school hit, honestly. But that was then... This was high school. This was now, and now wasn't quite as great.

My tray clattered to the ground suddenly, leaving my hands aching from the impact of when it was smacked out of them. All I could do was roll my eyes when Luca cooed, “ _Woops_.”

Luca was a nice guy in the past, sure, but since he reached varsity football in middle school, he started giving into his toxic masculinity. I guess the maddening levels of testosterone in the boys' locker rooms finally got to his head, but hey, who am I to judge? I tried not to believe it at first, for reasons, but after a good few years of nothing but Luca digging deeper into his own asshole, I started to give in. There was no point in maintaining that level of optimism when it just kept getting shut down in the face of my ever-thinning patience.

“Dick...”

Luca’s eyes shot over to me with what must have been the most distasteful look I had ever seen. “What did you say to me?” It probably would have scared me if he had ever followed through on a single one of his threats. I wasn't exactly weak. I was very fit, actually, but I wasn't exactly a football player. I knew better, though.

I straightened up when I knew I was heard, plastering on a hesitant smile. “Ah, nothing.” I wondered to myself where Luca’s right hand could have gone, when suddenly I felt my back hit something solid. I jumped in surprise, not wanting any sort of altercation with another jock, but when I turned around, I let out a sigh of relief. “Hey, Chris.”

Chris smiled back. “Hey.”

Christophe Giacometti has been my best friend since diapers. We spent nearly every day together, jumping between each other's houses to study, watch movies, or just sit in silence and do our own thing. Any kind of excuse we could find to fill loneliness with each other's company was a good one. Chris really was good company. Sweet, funny, and with an undying love for romance, despite never having a real partner past a little innocent romance in kindergarten. Romance, and... other things. One time, I found a secret stash of hand-written erotica in his room. Surprisingly, he’s a great writer... and a creative one.

He fixed the frame of is round glasses on his nose. “We still on for movie night?”

I nodded as I picked my tray up off the tile floor. “Always. It’s your pick this time, right?”

“You know it,” Chris grinned. “I rented _When Harry Met Sally_.”

“Of course it’s a rom-com,” I snickered. “You’re on popcorn duty, Billy Crystal.”

Chris waved off my remark with a laugh. “Already bought the Jiffy Pop, Meg Ryan.”

I let out a snort while he winked at me. “Yikes.”

We both jumped suddenly, when it was Chris’s turn to have his lunch tray smacked to the ground.

Ah, _there_ was the other half.

Mickey howled with laughter as he walked past, triggering a heavy huff from me.

Mickey was also pretty okay in the past, but he always had a history of being a prick. I remember one time he had pushed a kid off the monkey bars in fourth grade and left him with a broken arm. Sure, Mickey might have been the smartest guy on the football team, but that’s not saying much.

I stuck on a forced smile and looked over toward him with eyes that definitely weren’t smiling. “ _Hey_. Pick that up, will you?”

Mickey glanced back with a rather unattractive snort. “I’m sorry, were you talking to me?”

“Yeah, I was,” I retorted. I could feel my smile tightening as I spoke. “Could you tell me what could give you the right to abuse my friend like that, while within the next two years you’ll be pumping gas into the car he gets with his actual job from his actual intelligence?”

Mickey pursed his lips for a moment, before scoffing with a roll of his eyes. “Whatever, nerd.”

Finally, the headaches left, so I bent down to pick up Chris’s tray and pushed it back into his hands. “You okay, Chris?”

“Yeah, it’s nothing,” Chris shrugged, fixing the strap of his bag on his shoulder. Such a tough kid. I envied his strength, really. He was leagued beyond me and my scheming ass.

I smiled, for real this time, and gave Chris a pat on the shoulder. “Come on, let’s get lunch and find somewhere to sit.” Chris nodded, and we both got our unimpressive meals from the lunch line. Sloppy Joes, an apple, milk, the works. Again, I wished I had brought something from home.

When we sat down, it was at the end of a table tucked into the corner. Same place as last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. We ate in a comfortable silence, focusing on forcing down our lunches and getting ahead on the homework we already had gotten from the first classes of the day. Most of the time, though, I was pretending to do my homework, and instead listened in on the conversations of the people around us. It was like people watching, but looked a lot less creepy and never ended in someone telling me to mind my own business. There were some close calls where someone would say something funny and I'd barely be able to stifle a laugh, but surprisingly enough, there were very few funny people at my high school.

But I could feel the eyes on the back of my head. I could always feel some sort. I knew I was never alone, and in the worst way possible.

My appetite was soon lost halfway through my meal, and the bell rang for class. Knowing the teachers at my school, using the restroom right after lunch was never really seen as something valid. _May I use the restroom? Why didn't you go during lunch? I didn't have to go during lunch. Lunch is the time to go, so sit down._ You know the drill. So it was best to go now during the passing period, and I rushed. Yes, it’s a stupid thing to bring up. Hahah, piss jokes. But it brings me to my next point, _trust me_.

In the restroom, I saw none other than the three people arguably in charge of the entirety of Westerburg High School. They never placed the titles on themselves, but people called them Princes. They really were like royalty. They floated above all the drama. Never bothered, never harassed... They had the world in their palms and a whole lot of kisses left in their wake. I would have given anything to be like that. So I was scheming through the last days of summer vacation. I had plans, but I never would have guessed I would run into them as soon as the first day of senior year.

But there they were.

Prince Plisetsky, Yuri. He was certainly a loud one. If you ever needed to find him in a crowd, you'd look for the leopard prints. Or just listen for the yelling. Despite how much he liked to insult you, though, he never cut very deep. He's either too stupid or, surprisingly enough, too nice to do any real damage. I could never really tell.

Prince Popovich, Georgi. Yearbook committee president, so all of our legacies went through him. He had no discernible personality, but the last time he lost a girlfriend, he wore all black for a week. Total drama queen... er, prince.

And Prince Leroy, Jean-Jacques. The almighty. Some even called him King JJ. All I can say is... wow. He is mind-bogglingly awful.

When I walked into the men’s restroom, I at first only saw Yuri and JJ, leaned up against adjacent walls in a corner next to one of the stalls. They seemed bored out of their minds, finding more entertainment in their nail beds and the tile floor than in their friend. I definitely _heard_ Georgi, though. It was hard not to, even from outside the room. He was sobbing in the closed stall, flushing something down the toilet.

“God, _grow up_ , Georgi, she never would have read your poetry anyway.” JJ stared up at the ceiling... as the tardy bell rang.

 _Woops_.

“Not that you should have written any before your inevitable fourth breakup with the same damn girl,” Yuri chimed in. “Maybe you should give up after five.”

“Because you’re one to give relationship advice.” Georgi tore up a piece of paper and dropped it into the toilet with what must have been a flush of finality. It made as much of an impact as one would expect.

The door opened behind me, and in walked Mr. Feltsman. He seemed to look right through me when he saw the Princes and gave a curt laugh. “Ah, you three. I don’t know if you could hear over all the crying, but the bell rang. You’re late for class.” If anytime were my chance, that was it. I pulled my notebook and pen out of my backpack.

JJ put on a wounded look. “Oh come on, Feltsman. Georgi’s upset. We’re helping him.”

“Not without a hall pass you’re not,” Mr. Feltsman chuckled. “Week’s detention, all of you.”

I ripped out the page I was working on and held it out toward the teacher. “Actually, sir, we’re all out on a hall pass. Yearbook.” When he looked over at me, I flashed a smile, and he snatched the paper from my hands. He looked over it with something akin to disappointment. If I were a teacher, getting those three in some sort of trouble would be pretty satisfying, too, but this was no time for his victories. I had other plans.

“Well, I see you’re all listed...” He handed the paper back to me and waved us off before he left. “Hurry up and get to where you’re going.” When the door closed behind him, the weight of the Princes’ stares was like concrete on my shoulders. I could hardly breathe as it felt as if the air itself was getting heavier. By the time they moved, you probably could have buttered toast with that thick atmosphere.

JJ seemed to look straight into my core while he stepped forward and held out his hand. Those eyes were piercing when he wanted them to be. Teasing, calculating, and uncaring all at the same time. It took me a moment to process his intentions before I finally put the pieces together and placed my fake hall pass into his outstretched palm.

This was it... _My plan might have been working_.

He studied the paper intensely before handing it off to Georgi and Yuri to look over. He held it pinned between his index and middle fingers, hot as a cigarette and just as dangerous. “Nice talent for forgery... Who are you?”

 _Wow,_ his tone threw me off balance for a moment there. Was he always that terrifying up close? He’d probably always been that terrifying up close...

I was lost in the image of a terrifying baby JJ for a hot second before I finally found my voice to respond. Almost forgot my name for a moment there. “Oh, uh, Viktor Nikiforov... I’m looking for a deal.”

JJ’s lips cracked into a smirk. “A deal, huh? What deal?”

 _Screaming_.

To make myself seem more... well, somewhere close to their level, I stood up straighter. I couldn’t screw this up. “I want to sit at your table during lunch. Just once, no need for talking... If people think you think I’m alright, they’ll leave me alone enough to get through the school year.”

JJ glanced back at the other two with an amused snort.

_Uh oh._

“I also do report cards, permission slips, and absence notes!”

Georgi looked away from JJ over towards the stall. “How about love notes? I’d like to trick that bitch into thinking Phi-”

The King’s eyes left me for the first time in what felt like _way_ too long. “Shut up.”

“Sorry...”

JJ sighed lightly as he circled around me like a vulture, and the other two followed suit. He sized me up from head to toe with that look of his again, but this time was a lot more thorough. I couldn’t ever tell what he was thinking behind those eyes. I suddenly felt a lot smaller, and yet I was clearly the elephant in the room. “Well... underneath the frumpy clothes, you don’t look half bad. Good form, nice face...”

“He’ll need a change of wardrobe, for sure,” Yuri snickered.

Georgi tugged a bit on my ponytail. “And a haircut.”

JJ finally stopped his stalking and stood in front of me, crossing his arms. “You know, we could make this work. After school, we’re going to sift through your clothes and get you to an acceptable state before you’re seen anywhere near us, capiche?”

 _Hell yes_.

“Yeah, capiche."

 

* * *

 

 

Slacks, a button-up, a jumper tied at my chest... And _short hair_ , combed neatly to the side. It felt foreign, like such things should never have been seen on someone like me. I had never seen myself as someone special. Everyone has their unique qualities, of course, but looking like this was like asking to be treated as such.Deep down, I missed blending into the crowd and avoiding eye contact. I missed my scarf, my favorite coat, my trainers...

But for the first time in a while, I felt _confident_ sauntering up to the high school’s front doors. Eyes were on me, but not a single one held a hint of scorn. They were wondering, searching, curious eyes. Something I had never had come my way before. And I had a shield. I had Princes at my sides and right in front of me, parting the other students like the Red Sea, and it felt _great_. I was hell on wheels and everyone was afraid of getting burned. My head was held higher, my strides were wider, my words were louder.

I heard people ask who I was.

I heard people saying my name.

“Who’s that with the Princes?”

"Damn, new kid?"

“Wait, is that Viktor Nikiforov?”

 

_“Is Viktor a Prince now?”_


	2. Candy Store

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I frowned. “Come on, he’s a nice guy. This would kill him.”  
> JJ looked at me with a somewhat amused, mainly frustrated look. “I’m sorry, are we gonna have a problem?” He stepped toward me, and I took a subconscious step back. “You haven’t had any issues with this kind of thing before, Viktor. Why are you suddenly pulling on my dick?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter also includes "Fight for Me" lmao  
> Short chapters because the first half of the musical has a new song every like 5 min plot time snjsflkasjid forgive me  
> Maybe the fact that I update very often makes up for it? Let's hope ;u;  
> [ALSO I drew my designs for the Princes, Viktor, and Yuuri here if you wanna check it out](http://animorbid.tumblr.com/post/158207658481/and-you-know-you-know-you-know-this-could-be)

I put my backpack down on the table --  _ the Princes’ lunch table _ \-- and was about to sit down when I felt a familiar feeling... Eyes on me, and  _ not _ in the good way. And then a thought occurred to me. I had the overwhelming feeling that I was forgetting something... Something important. Then when I looked up, my eyes locked with Chris’s.

_ Shit _ . Movie night. I was with the Princes last night, so caught up in my new little world, I had totally forgotten. I bit my lip in hesitation, before stepping away from my spot at the table. “Hey, I’ll be right back.”

“Don’t take too long, or I might get impatient,” JJ sighed. “Hurry up.”

I trotted away from the table towards the corner I had known for three years, approaching with a smile that couldn’t reach my eyes. “Hey, Chris...”

Chris glanced up at me with a smile of his own, but I could see how sad he was. He rested his chin in his palm, his weight down on his elbow. His lunch hadn’t been touched. “Hi.”

I sat down across from him and tugged a bit at the collar of my shirt. “I’m sorry about last night... I got caught up in some stuff and never got a chance to call.”

“It’s okay, I understand,” Chris muttered, pushing around some peas on his tray with a spork. “The Princes like you. That’s exciting.”

A pang went through my chest at the tone of Chris’s voice. “Look... This isn’t going to change anything. It’s just for today. No matter what happens, you’re still my best friend, okay?”

After a moment’s pause and a short sigh, Chris looked up at me. His eyes were still gleaming, but I could tell this smile was more genuine. “...Okay. I can’t really stay mad at you.”

_ Thank god. _

I offered a smile in return, but to my surprise, Chris started laughing. My expression shifted into one of amused confusion. “What’s so funny?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Chris snickered. “It’s just that dressed like that, even your  _ smile _ looks like a Prince’s.” I was about to retort when he calmed his laughter. “Really, it suits you.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh, please, I’m still just Viktor, not a Prince. Maybe sometime, we can play some dress-up and make  _ you _ look like a Prince.”

Chris laughed again. “Already done. I just looked tacky.”

I chuckled in reply, and we fell into a short silence. I was about to say something else, when I felt a hand on my shoulder. Yuri was standing over me, looking bored but his voice cutting through the noise of the cafeteria with some sort of unearthly command. “Hey, haul ass back over to the table, will ya? We’ve got shit to discuss.”

“Oh, sorry.” I stood up from my seat and gave Chris a nod. “Let’s not let that popcorn and movie go to waste. Meet me tonight, alright?”

Chris grinned in reply as I started backing up to follow Yuri. “Alright, Vik.”

After a wave, I turned and headed back to the Princes’ table, where the other two were waiting. I took my seat, Yuri sat next to me, and then JJ spoke up. “So, first of all, be more careful about who you’re seen with, okay? We wouldn’t want you slipping back down to your former state. Second, I need an absence note.”

I pulled out my notebook and pen. “Yeah, cool.”

“I’m going to a party at the university on Sunday and there’s no way in hell I’m coming to school on Monday with a hangover.”

“You’re going to a college party?” Georgi piped up.

JJ rolled his eyes. “No, at the university for infants.  _ Of course _ it’s a college party.”

Georgi reeled back. “Sorry...”

I forged out a note, but before I ripped it out, JJ tapped the paper with his fingertip. “Give that to me on Friday, ‘kay?”

“We decided to let you stick around,” Yuri said with a smirk.

Georgi nodded. “You can stay useful. At least until Friday, for now.”

At that, I perked up. I wasn’t expecting  _ that _ . “...Really?”

JJ wagged a finger at me. “Don’t fuck it up.”

 

* * *

 

_ Dear Diary, _

_ Week three since I became friends with the Princes! Well, friends isn’t exactly the right word. They’re more like coworkers, and our job is to be popular and cool and whatnot. I’ve been losing time to myself to focus on what I had set out to do in the first place, but people are finally leaving me alone... I think it’ll be a fair tradeoff in the long run. Instead of focusing on survival, I’m actually having fun, oddly enough. I hope it lasts. _

 

* * *

 

I shoved my textbook into my locker and paused to write down a few notes to myself. After tucking them into my bag, I heard Chris’s voice. “Hey, Vik!”

I turned to see him walking over and gave a wide smile. “Hey, Chris. How’s it going?”

“Going fine,” Chris shrugged, leaning on the lockers next to mine. “You’re looking great these days.”

“Awe, thank you.” I subconsciously reached up to run my fingers through my hair. “But underneath, I’m still the same me.”

Chris rose an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”

“Look, I’m sorry I flaked on going out this weekend,” I huffed, closing my locker. “I just have a lot going on. I’ll make it up to you, okay?”

Chris shrugged. “It’s fine, I understand. You’re with the Princes now, and it’s exciting.” He looked off somewhere behind me. “Speak of the devil. I think they’re wanting you.”

I looked back, and sure enough, the mentioned three were standing a little ways off looking at me. When I met eyes with JJ, he motioned for me to get over there. After a quick nod, I offered Chris a smile. “I’ll see you later.”

When I got over to them, JJ handed me a pen and paper. “I need you to do a forgery for me, in Luca Vaude’s handwriting. You’ll need something to write on.” He looked over to Georgi. “Bend over.” Georgi sighed and leaned forward, letting me rest my paper and notebook on his back. As JJ spoke, I wrote. “Hey babe, I’ve been thinking a lot about us and how we were back in the old days. I hope you can come to my homecoming party this weekend. Miss you! Luca.” The Princes laughed, and JJ looked at my handiwork. “Put a little heart after the signature.”

I finished up and handed it over to JJ while Georgi stood up straight. “What’s this for?”

“I just heard Christophe  _ Gay _ acometti and Luca Vaude used to hang out in kindergarten,” JJ chuckled.

“Well, yeah, we all did,” I said back.

“But we all didn’t have a  _ thing _ ,” Georgi put in.

“Oh my god, I remember!” Yuri held back a loud laugh. “I remember they kissed once on the kickball field and the teachers put them in time-out. It was so gross!”

I felt a rush of  _ something _ through me. Frustration? Probably. “Well, why don’t you go after Luca for that, too?”

“Luca’s dated enough girls since then to make up for it,” Georgi shrugged.

“Anyway,” JJ said, looking over towards Luca and Mickey as they passed. “Hey, Luca!”

Luca glanced over, looked back to Mickey, and then headed over across the hallway towards us. “Yeah?”

JJ folded up the note, before tucking it into his hand. “Could you give this to note to Christophe Gayacometti for me?”

I jumped up a bit. “Wait, no!”

“What? Since when do you talk to that kid?” Luca chuckled, starting to open up the paper.

“Oh, don’t read it,” JJ hastily interrupted, wagging his finger. “He was asking about some boys from the university and it’s just a bunch of their numbers.”

“Eugh, seriously? No, thanks.” Luca held the note back out, and I took that chance to snatch it back before he walked away with Mickey.

I held the note close, giving JJ a pleading look. “Please, don’t do this... Not to Chris.”

“Why? It’ll give him left hand material for weeks,” Georgi laughed.

“Shut up, Georgi,” JJ sighed.

I frowned. “Come on, he’s a nice guy. This would kill him.”

JJ looked at me with a somewhat amused, mainly frustrated look. “I’m sorry, are we gonna have a problem?” He stepped toward me, and I took a subconscious step back. “You haven’t had any issues with this kind of thing before, Viktor. Why are you suddenly pulling on my dick?”

“...I just-”

“Do you wanna lose what you’ve worked so hard to gain? Is that it?” JJ stepped closer, pinning me down with his gaze. “You wanna go back to your old life? Fine. But you won’t just hit the same level you were at before. If everyone knows that we’ve got a particular problem with you, life can only be hell.” His lips spread in a wicked grin. “Understand?”

I couldn’t really speak. I couldn’t really do anything. I just stared, trying to find any kind of words to force out of my aching throat. But JJ took that as a go-ahead, and stepped away from me. I stared as he walked away, stared as he went over to Chris, stared as he dropped the note into his hands, stared as Chris read it...

JJ walked back over and pat my shoulder. “Good boy.” He flashed a smile. “See you tomorrow.”

Now left alone with the Princes going over to Yuri’s locker, I went back over to Chris to assess the damages. Chris was still looking down at the paper in his hands, and when I got over to him, he looked up at me with a wide grin. “Vik, look! Luca invited me to his homecoming party!”

And then I was trapped. If he believed it, he would only be crushed later... If he knew I was the one who wrote it, he would never forgive me...

I decided to let him believe.

“Wow, really?” I forced out a smile of my own. “That’s great, Chris.”

“Told you there was still something there,” Chris said with a wink.

I took in a silent breath. “Well, you sure proved me wrong.”

Chris looked back down at the note for a moment, before sighing wistfully and tucking it into his pocket. “Anyway, I’m heading home. See you tomorrow?”

I nodded back. “Yeah, see ya.”

After Chris left, I leaned against my locker with a heavy huff. The guilt was maddening... I ran a hand through my hair, biting my lip to keep my emotions back.

“You shouldn’t have given in, you know. They’re gonna crush that boy.”

I opened my eyes and glanced around quickly before I spotted someone I didn’t recognize... which is saying something when you live in a small town like Sherwood, Ohio. He donned a long black trench coat, and his dark hair was pushed back with a few loose locks over his forehead. He wasn’t even looking at me. He simply kept rummaging through his locker.

_...Damn. _

It took me a second to push words from my head to my mouth. “I’m sorry, what?”

He closed his locker with a heavy  _ clack _ , before finally meeting his eyes with my own. They were deep and dark, held hardly open. “I know you really didn’t want to do what they told you. You gotta hold yourself a little higher.” He shot me a wink. “Yeah?”

_ Daaaaamn... _

I bit my lip again, unable to speak, before he put his bag’s strap on his shoulder and started to walk away.

_ Say something, say something, say something, say something... _

“Uh, wait!”

He looked over his shoulder back at me. “Hm?”

“I, uh... I never caught your name.”

The other chuckled lightly. “That’s because I didn’t pitch it.”

As he walked away again, I couldn’t find the means to stop him. I was floored... I looked around myself, hoping to find some answers in the walls and lockers of the hallway, and for some reason I was surprised to find none. I couldn’t help but chuckle at myself for that, and then let out a defeated huff.

Fine. If that was the game he’d play, I was willing to play along.

For now, though... I had a friend’s heart to protect, somehow.

_ Wait... _

My mouth hung open as I watched Mickey take a wild swing at No-name Kid. He dodged out of the way quickly, making Mickey’s fist connect rather hilariously with Luca’s face. Luca reeled back, before grunting and swinging at the boy, only to be tripped and discarded onto the floor. I had to hold back the laugh that tried to escape, while everyone else in the hallway looked on in awe, voicing their surprise fairly loudly.

The mystery boy nonchalantly fixed his coat and ran his fingers back through his hair, before walking off while Luca and Mickey tried to recollect themselves. I took a few quick steps forward, subconsciously wanting to follow him, until I saw JJ’s eyes staring into me. I froze, breaking myself from my thoughts.

Thoughts? What was I even thinking? I wasn’t thinking so much as I was feeling. I couldn’t say what those feelings were, though. They were foreign. Unknown. Something I had only hoped to ever feel and new the concept well, but never knew what it was like to actually experience. It was frustrating, tugging, tingling, burning, aching...

Oh, yikes, I was sounding like one of Chris’s rom-coms...

Rom-coms...

_ Romance. _

Oh, shit, I was doomed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More soon~ Leave kudos if you're enjoying!!


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